Sunday May 11, 2025
Hargeisa (HOL) — At least 30 Somaliland’s House of Representatives members have submitted a formal motion seeking to legally suspend any future negotiations with the Federal Government of Somalia, further escalating tensions following recent developments in Las Anod.
Speaker of the House, Yasin Haji Mohamud Xiir (Faratoon), read the names of the lawmakers backing the motion during a session on Saturday and confirmed the proposal has been accepted and referred to the House’s legal advisor for further review.
The motion comes weeks after the Somaliland government announced a unilateral suspension of dialogue with Mogadishu, citing what it described as an infringement on its sovereignty after Somali Prime Minister Hamse Abdi Barre visited Las Anod on April 12.
During his visit, the prime minister announced the formal recognition of SSC-Khaatumo as a member state of the Federal Government of Somalia—a move that Somaliland leaders condemned as a violation of their territorial claims.
While the executive branch of Somaliland’s government has already frozen talks with the federal government, parliamentary approval of the motion would give the decision legal weight, effectively barring any future resumption of dialogue without legislative approval.
Talks between Somaliland and the federal government first began in London in 2012, following parliamentary approval in Hargeisa to engage in dialogue with Mogadishu for the first time since Somaliland declared independence in 1991. The process, which then-President Ahmed Mohamed Silanyo initially spearheaded, was intended to foster mutual understanding and find a long-term resolution to the status of Somaliland.
The talks have stalled repeatedly over the past 13 years without producing concrete outcomes. The latest move by Somaliland’s lawmakers signals a deepening rift and growing frustration with the trajectory of the dialogue.
If passed, the motion would mark the first time Somaliland’s legislature has legally codified a freeze in bilateral talks with the federal government.